A mucky-minded motorist has been refused the number plate of his dreams after being told FCKU2MF is too offensive. The Swedish Transport Agency disappointed a man from Stockholm by giving the thumbs down to the risqué registration. The Transportstyrelsen group said the request was rejected as guidelines stipulate that car plates should not be formed in a way that could cause upset to other drivers.
According to The Local, other combinations, spelling out Beetle, HEINEKN, Come On, My BMW, Gestapo and Sexyboy, have also previously been turned down by the group. The rules also state that registrations must not encroach on established trademarks.
The process of applying for personalised number plates in Sweden takes around ten days and costs SEK 6,000 (USD 748). Slogans can be made up from a combination of numbers and letters but must be between two and seven characters long, including spaces.
All applications are reviewed by the agency’s administrators who consult with company lawyers if anything is deemed to be dodgy. According to the guidelines, once a decision has been made, it is final and cannot be appealed.
Since it became possible to create personalised number plates in 2000, many Swedes have opted to swap their car’s original digits for something a bit more eye-catching. 2004 saw a record year, with 2,661 motorists changing their plates, but the novelty appears to have worn off slightly, with only 2,003 drivers paying for the privilege in 2008.